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This episode is an interview with Dr. Jason Martineau "The Spiritual Dimensions of Music" and is being released on Monday, March 28, 2011. My interview with Jason was recorded on March 24, 2011.

Jason Martineau is an award-winning composer, pianist, arranger, and instructor, and has been active in the San Francisco Bay Area since 1995. He is a graduate of the University of South Florida, the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Manhattan School of Music, and has composed numerous works for orchestra, chamber ensembles, solo piano, and chorus, as well as a full-length musical, multiple film scores, and over 200 songs, both instrumental and vocal. Dr. Martineau has recorded more than ten CDs in various genres, and has also been featured on numerous other artists' recordings, as pianist, music director, and producer. He provides scores, arrangements, original compositions, soundtracks, sound design, accompaniment, private instruction, and musical direction for a diverse and eclectic client base.

Dr. Martineau works in multiple capacities with many different idioms and styles, from world fusion and jazz, to avant-garde, industrial, rock, pop, and classical. Recently he orchestrated string arrangements by Vanessa Carlton for her latest album "Heroes and Thieves". He has also authored a book on music theory released October 2008 entitled "The Elements of Music," published by Wooden Books and Walker Books/Bloomsbury, distributed both nationally and internationally. His film scores have been featured in documentaries broadcast on PBS stations around the US since 1998. He also provides music cues and backgrounds for a large variety of multimedia projects. He has been playing the piano for 36 years, performing since 1989 at numerous venues in the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, New York, and more recently, the 10th International Festival of Dance and Music in Bangkok, Thailand. In 2011 he joined the faculty at the Academy of Art University, teaching music notation and theory.

Hi Robin – The piece goes by two titles, “Opening” and “Closing”, it’s from the Koyaanisqatsi soundtrack, a 1982 movie by Godfrey Reggio. I think whenever the piece shows up on later compilations, it most often goes by “Opening”. This movie and this soundtrack were my introduction to his music, I must say they go together remarkably well.

Wow, great show! My music listening will be different after hearing this show. The part about different ethnic styles was very interesting. That short indian part, what was it? Any tips about that kind of fundamental mystical indian music? I have listened most to Shankar’s ragas, but they are quite different from what you played.

Hi Mike – Thank you for the good words, and I am delighted that you were inspired by the interview. The raga that I simulated goes by two names: Basant Mukhari, and Vakulabharanam. I imagine you can find a Shankar recording with this raga. I did not play a specific version or well-known melody with that excerpt, I just gave a basic idea of the scale and the kinds of elements in Indian music.

Thanks to both Jan and Jason on the making of this podcast. I, like the gentleman, found the raga section you played to be something beyond. That might have been one of the smallest yet best parts of the whole interview to me. The raga seems to have a beautiful sort of unfolding nature upon itself that never stops and is very almost four dimensional in a sense. Jason, do you know how I could go about tuning my guitar to generate that sound of the raga?

Matt – I am not sure about how to attain the exact srutis involved to emulate the precise tuning of a sitar in this case, but I can give you the same procedure that I used to generate the scale on the piano, which would work on any Western instrument. It is essentially a major scale with the following alterations: b2, b6, b7. The scale is thus: Db, Ebb, F, Gb, Ab, Bbb, Cb, Db… or similarly, C#, D, E#, F#, G#, A, B, C#. You may recognize this also as our harmonic minor scale, starting and ending on the 5th scale degree (so, in this case, Gb/F# harmonic minor). It is also a scale found in Jewish music. Much of the flavor is attained by how you approach and depart from the various tones. If you experiment with this scale you will find what you seek.

Wow!! That was an amazing show. I’ve never been more interested in music. He created a tangible connection between thought and music. I probably won’t hear music the same again. Makes me really wish i could play!!!

Actually as fate would have it. Getting a piano this Friday. I’m going to buy the book for my wife! I’m definitely goin to give it a shot. Jason put music into terms and context that I can relate to and he makes it seem like I could learn. So we’ll see. The show is definitely motivating in that regard!

I really appreciated this interview. Thanks to both Jan and Jason for sharing. Jason, you have a way of presenting the elements of music, and the “feel” of music, in a way that is very inspiring and friendly. The whole family at my home was very entertained and educated by you.

My daughters (15 and 12) think you are the Bob Ross of music . . . you know, the painting guy on public broadcasting . . . “I think there’s a friendly little critter in a tree back there” and “this sky wants a fluffy cloud right there . . .”

Jan and Jason, this was simply the most inspiring thing I have heard in years. I have been a musician for nearly 40 years and although I know some music theory and even instictively feel some of what you were talking about, this podcast went way beyond my expectations. I particularly liked the way Jason describes the evolution of intervals and how music moved from harmonic series through fifth, third …all the way to 9ths and beyond. Such profound thoughts but so well explained!

I am going to look at how I create music now, maybe shelving chords for a while and getting into a single note dancing about, concentrating on intervals and experimenting with disonnance and resolution more.

Always enjoyed the podcast but I’ve never listened to one more than twice before, I have listened to this three times, You were right Jan, it’s a mind-blower

Just a minor note (no pun intended): Around 2:12 there is a mention about Heavy Metal being detrimental to plants and Classical music being good. It’s the other way around.

“The one that was grown with classical music — a soft, almost a caressing of the plant when it is hit with that sort of soundwave — those grew slightly shorter because of the soundwaves bombarding them and were slightly more floriferous and there was slightly less pest and disease.

“And the ones with Black Sabbath — great big, thumping noise, rowdy music — they were the shortest, but they had the best flowers and the best resistance to pest and disease.”